Essays by the activist poet (Civil Wars, 1981, etc.) that offer moments of insight or interpretation but are best for fellow progressives. Jordan (African-American Studies/UC at Berkeley) articulates positions, confronts ambiguities, rallies the troops, salves wounds. In these pieces (most from 1986-92, many from The Progressive), Jordan tries to reconcile art and racial, (bi)sexual, and feminist political commitments. Strikingly, it is never Jordan's own identity being questioned, sought, and defined but, rather, America's. The author pays tribute to her Jamaican immigrant parents—true believers in the American Dream—and to the thriving black Brooklyn community where she grew up (described in the press—to her bemusement—as ``breeding grounds of despair''). There are civics lessons about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights (showing how African-Americans and women only gradually- -through popular pressure—gained rights); a powerful exploration of the American idealization of individuality and of the artist's quest for obligation-free solitude (showing how these attitudes, which Jordan says deny collective responsibility, lead to personal and societal tragedy). Jordan fights back against sociopolitical attacks on black mothers; speaks up for Palestinian rights; celebrates Martin Luther King while affirming the leadership capacities ``within each one of us''; can't forgive Mike Tyson for rape yet mourns his downfall and the society he grew in. She calls for multicultural education; turns to Shakespeare for solace; decries the p.c. debate as a red herring while the scandalous deficiencies of community colleges go ignored. Her account of how Jesse Jackson's 1988 candidacy was scuttled tells truths while being unduly selective. Moving, inspiring at best; mildly informative but too often sketchy.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-679-40625-5
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Pantheon
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1992
BOOK REVIEW
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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